Atlanta Magic Night Celebrates 4 Years of Wonder
Atlanta Magic Night Celebrates 4 Years of Wonder City’s Longest-Running Magic/Mentalism Show Continues to Amaze ATLANTA – April 17, 2018 — Atlanta’s longest-running magic and mentalism show, Atlanta Magic Night, celebrates its four-year anniversary on May 5, 2018 at 8:00 PM at the Red Light Café in midtown. The show was launched in May 2014 and is produced by comedian Jerry Farber (https://jerryfarberscomedy.com), mentalist Mark Johnson (https://www.markjohnsonspeaks.com), and magician/mentalist Joe M. Turner (https://turnermagic.com). Farber is an Atlanta entertainment legend whose former comedy club, Jerry Farber’s Side Door, was the show’s original venue. “These guys really made it happen,” says Farber. “They’re top shelf performers and there was never a doubt in my mind that they’d connect with audiences.” Johnson, a mentalist, author, and communication consultant, originally approached Farber about putting together a team to produce a show. Said Johnson, “When we started there was no ongoing venue for live magic anywhere in Atlanta. We changed that, and the success of Atlanta Magic Night has been deeply rewarding. Not only do we have terrific shows, we also have a growing community of people who are seeing professional magic. And we couldn’t have done it without the early support of Jerry Farber. He has helped us so much along the way.” Turner, a magician, mentalist, and professional conference keynoter, previously produced a one-man show, Shenanigans, in Atlanta from 2005 to 2008. “Producing a show can become an all-consuming task,” he said. “Working with Jerry and Mark made it not just more efficient, but also just plain fun. I think the vibe of the show, and really the whole brand, reflects that. It’s funny, even a little irreverent, but always coming through with an impossible magical experience. And it’s clear the city wanted that experience, because we are consistently selling out. The Red Light Cafe has been a fantastic venue for us and we are grateful.” The show features a different line-up of magicians and mentalists each month. The anniversary show on May 5 will feature Johnson, Turner, Paul Sponaugle, Howie Marmer, with a planned guest appearance by Farber. Tickets are available via Eventbrite.com, RedLightCafe.com, and AtlantaMagicNight.com. Contact Atlanta Magic Night | Joe M. Turner, Producer
What I Learned from 3 Islands and the Tango
What I Learned from 3 Islands and the Tango In late February I traveled to Auckland where I fulfilled a speaking engagement before embarking on a cruise through the south Pacific. Now that I’m back, here are a few lessons I learned. New Zealand: There’s no substitute for the personal touch. While in New Zealand, my wife and I stayed for a few days with our friends Alan & Michele Watson. We’ve traveled extensively and stayed in hotels and Airbnb lodging, but there’s no better way to experience the world than in the company of friends. Wherever you go, if you don’t have some, make some. For the record, Alan Watson – a recipient of the Queen’s Service Medal, by the way – may be the hardest working, most dependable, highest attention-to-detail man in show business. He has unbelievable dedication to the art, to his own work, and to his friends. Tonga: Raging storms can slow, but never stop, the determined. We had lunch at Oholei Beach Resort and the owner described the rebuilding they’ve done after many cyclones and life challenges. Faith, family, and personal determination have kept them going. If you visit Tonga, make sure to see their show in the beautiful Hina Cave, right on the beach. Dancing, music, fire-eating, and a beautiful island legend make for an unforgettable experience. Aitutaki: Don’t assume the answer is no; ask for what you need. While having a drink at Aitutaki Village resort overlooking arguably the planet’s most beautiful lagoon, I met a couple who had bicycled to the lagoon from another resort several miles away. They were hot and exhausted, and wanted a drink. Unfortunately, they didn’t have enough Cook Island currency to buy more than one, and the credit card machine was down. They assumed they had no other options, so they were beyond surprised when I told them that the bar accepted U.S. dollars. The exchange rate was not ideal, but it was an option they didn’t know they had. By the way, I had paid with U.S. dollars and asked for my change in the local currency. Among other things, Cook Island has a $1 coin, a $2 shaped like a triangle, and a $3 bill! The Tango: Beginner action trumps expert stalling. While on the ship, my wife and I resumed the ballroom dance classes we started on our last cruise. It takes courage to learn something in class one afternoon and then attempt it on the floor that evening, especially when you are surrounded by people with vastly more experience than you have. Sometimes it would take us a while to work up the nerve. But once we were out there, it was worth the effort even with my clumsy missteps. Lesson? Don’t let fear or limited tools stop you from starting. Use the words, tools, and steps that you have and take action. You can keep watching and learning, but don’t deprive yourself of the joy of using what you know. The least experienced dancers on the floor are learning much more than any who are judging them from a chair.
Two Post-Oscar Olympic Observations
Two Post-Oscar Olympic Observations The 2018 Winter Olympics concluded just as my wife and I were leaving for an overseas trip. Thanks to YouTube TV, we have a recording of the closing ceremonies that we can enjoy when we get home. When the Winter Olympics were finished the media buzz immediately went on to the Oscars, but I continued to think about two moments that I thought were noteworthy. Today I’m on a cruise ship in Fiji, but here are a couple of lessons we can take away from PyeongChang. Few things are as genuinely endearing as sincere humility, or as inspiring as good sportsmanship. The unexpected win by Czech skier Ester Ledecka in the Super-G was a shock not only to her, but also to the woman she beat out for the gold medal, Austria’s Anna Veith. The presumptive winner was already practically celebrating, being congratulated by friends, and simply waiting for what everyone knew was a fait accompli. Except that it wasn’t. Ledecka had never finished higher than 19th in a World Cup race in this sport, but she had the race of her life to win Olympic gold. She couldn’t even believe it herself when she learned the result. She was there to do her best, without an expectation of a medal at all. And her reaction touched everyone. Watch the exciting race here: https://www.nbcolympics.com/news/watch-stunned-commentators-call-ester-ledeckas-shocking-victory Now silver medalist Veith was obviously surprised and disappointed, but still congratulated her fellow athlete with a smile and a hug. Contrast this with other personalities at the Olympics whose moments of disappointment included one athlete removing a silver medal from around her own neck, or another tweeting thinly-veiled race-baiting following an impartial tie-breaking process he was fine with until he lost. Which actions demonstrate maturity, sportsmanship, and championship character in the face of crisis and disappointment? Which do you want for yourself and your brand? Ingenuity, determination, and persistence can overcome systemic obstacles or expectations. Elizabeth Swaney may not go down in sports history as a champion skier but she accomplished something that many dream of but never do anything about: she became an Olympic athlete. The halfpipe skier made it to the Olympics by analyzing the qualification rules. She trained to ski a basic, non-trick routine well enough to do it consistently without falling and took that fundamental routine to enough qualifying events to meet the point and placement requirements. Without tricks, her skills would always land her in last place. On occasion, others would fall and she would finish a couple of spots above last place. In all cases, she always finished in the required placement, often because there were not enough participants. She then found a country where she had a legitimate claim for being considered for the team and who had no athletes vying for the spot. She found that match in Hungary, her grandparents’ home and a nation with no female halfpipe skiers. Result? She is now and forever an Olympian. Watch the whole story here: https://www.nbcolympics.com/news/how-freeskier-elizabeth-swaney-made-it-olympics-simple-halfpipe-run Many criticized Swaney online, saying that she “scammed” the system or was an “imposter.” I take a more positive view. This woman saw an opportunity, found a way to follow the rules, and lived out an amazing dream. Her run on the halfpipe was simple in comparison to the trick-filled routines of the others, but I suspect few average Twitter haters could remain standing throughout even her basic run. She treated the process and the sport with respect, trained, dedicated personal time and resources to qualifying,did her best in the contests she entered, and found a way to fulfill a dream that millions of others have stood by and talked about but never bothered to pursue. The expectations of others didn’t stop her. Assumptions about what it takes to go to the Olympics didn’t stop her. The qualifying rules, which would look intimidating to any person simply reading them for the first time, didn’t stop her from doing the research to see that there was an opening. She developed basic skills and applied ingenuity and intelligence to make the most out of what she had. I could certainly benefit from applying similar virtues of creativity, ingenuity, and unconventional thinking to my own business.
The Research Stall
The Research Stall Let’s face it. Even the least change-averse person among us still has a resistance to change. Even the change champion feels hesitation. Sometimes we find ways to disguise our resistance and delay action even when we want to move forward. Consider the following. An Ongoing Magic Debate Last week I answered an online question from a fellow magician in a private forum. His question related to a technique that is used in card magic, a genre of the art which I have studied for almost my entire magical life. It is a technique that requires not only a significant investment of time and effort to learn, but also consistent, ongoing practice to maintain. It’s not a trivial skill to develop, and multiple versions of the technique have been developed. In the last 30 years or so it has truly caught fire within the industry and new developments on the principle are being released constantly. As a result, there is an ongoing tension about which approach to the principle is “best.” There are two primary approaches that have the lion’s share of the market. A new entry within the last few years is gaining traction. And there are a dozen other players each of which has vocal advocates. The debate about which is “best” comes up often, attracting comments from long-term adherents to recent adopters to new converts. My answer to the “which approach is best” question was to investigate the options, decide which approach had features that best suited his style, and to remember that whichever option he chose, the vast majority of experiences he could create using that technique were actually achievable using all of the available approaches. From the audience’s perspective, relatively few things were completely dependent on this choice. It was mostly a matter of what fit his own preferences and got him to take action. The technique is a tool, and there is much less profit in constantly agonizing over the debate than in making an informed decision and moving forward with implementing it. Unfortunately, many magicians spend so much waiting, second-guessing, and debating the merits of the approaches that they miss out on literally years of performance time when they could have been amazing audiences and learning performance lessons that they could apply to the work even if they ultimately changed their preferred approach later. Doesn’t This Sound Familiar? In the true story above, you could probably replace magic with almost any industry, and the specific technique in question with almost any decision that people have to make about tools and methods. In any change management situation, it is obviously important to do due diligence, do the research, and compare what you learn to what your specific needs and preferences are. But… Beware the inertia of the debate, the questioning, the “what if”-ing. There is a comfort in knowing that your delay in taking on the actual work is reasonably covered by the excuse of continuing your research. In change management, as in magic, things are not always quite what they seem. Change advocates and leaders can still be privately afraid of actually moving forward. An endless review loop is a good way to feel like you’re leading change even while you’re stalling! Are you stalling with a research excuse? Your audience is waiting.
Small Action, Big Impact
Small Action, Big Impact Have you ever considered the impact that a small action or decision can have on your audience? Something you consider minor can have an enormous impact on a customer, client, or anyone else who is paying attention to your brand. Here’s a real-world experience that may give you something to think about. So What Actually Happened? Last year I was invited to perform for a corporate client’s holiday party at a beautiful venue in Nashville, Tennessee. Despite unprecedented amounts of ice, snow, and multiple transportation obstacles between my home in Atlanta and the venue in Nashville, I still made it and let me tell you — I have never been so happy to get to work! (The story of overcoming those obstacles is a story worthy of an entire post of its own. Stay tuned!) For this corporate event I provided background piano music, strolling close-up magic, and an after-dinner cabaret magic and mentalism show. That stand-up magic show included a number of pieces that required help from the audience. Choosing assistants from an audience is part art and part science. As the performer, you are observing and evaluating countless characteristics. Is this person smiling and open? Refusing eye-contact? Have they enjoyed the show so far, or have you sensed some kind of tension? Are they obviously having a bad day? Are they wearing glasses? Do they need a cane? Does their behavior seem predictable or erratic? Will the stress of being onstage with you excite or terrify them? Will their participation give the audience more enjoyment, or will it create tension? You may not always be able to know the precise answer to all of these questions, but over time you develop a gut instinct for what makes a good fit in each “guest star” role of your show. I was looking for an audience assistant for a part of my show near the end, and as I scanned the audience I caught the eye of a young girl. She was anxious to help, and might have been a good fit if I were doing a show that was designed for young assistants… but in this case, she wasn’t quite what I needed. I smiled, said as politely as I could that I was going to need someone else, and moved on in my search. I was packing up after the show when she and her dad came by to speak. They were super polite and he simply said that she wanted to talk with me. It was clear that she was disappointed, but she mainly just wanted to interact with me. I thanked her for her willingness to to help and got an address. Later on, I sent her a pack of my personal playing cards as a souvenir. She sent back the thank-you card pictured in this article. Three Decisions and Their Aftermath Let’s look at some decisions that were made and what impact they had. First, no matter how politely I moved on from that moment, I consciously chose not to use this child in my program. In my work I either choose or don’t choose hundreds of people in every show. To me, the moment I decide to move on is a drop of water in an ever-flowing river, and I have very good reasons for those decisions. But to a person in my audience, they might never have been at a show with a performer who was using audience participants. They might catch my eye only one time during the show, and if I don’t choose them… that feels very different. If they have invested emotionally in the moment, it can be truly disappointing. Even adults know how disappointing it is to feel that we’ve been “passed over” for an award, or a promotion, or even a sale. We may have more maturity and more emotional tools for dealing with that and building on it, but it’s still a downer. My small action, no matter how necessary it was, nor how unintended any offense, had a disproportionately negative impact on that young lady. Fortunately, they told me about it rather than keeping it secret! Next, after finding out that the young lady was disappointed, I took action. I chose to send a gift and a short note of encouragement. This was another minor decision, as I have decks of cards on hand and it cost me next to nothing to put together a little gift. But the act of doing so was about more than my own reputation management – it was also intended to help a real person feel real joy. It is almost trivial to take a moment to attempt to bring genuine joy to someone who you know needs it. (Psssst — everyone needs it!) Finally, the young lady responded to what I thought was a trivial gift with a thank you note that she made herself! Clearly, my small actions had a big impact, but her thank you note also did – it was the impetus for this article, and a great illustration of core customer service and branding principles that everyone can learn from. What Can We Learn About Customer Service and Keeping Our Brand Promises? Here are some questions to consider: – Do your business processes have built-in decision points that can generate genuine disappointment for some people? (Pssst – the answer to this question is always “Yes.”) – Do you have channels open to find out about those situations? – Are you willing to evaluate those concerns, prioritize them, and address them? – Are you celebrating the successes of doing so, so that others in your audience can see your brand honestly trying to live up to its promises? In any business, you will sometimes have to make decisions that mean some people don’t get exactly what they wanted. However, with thought and effort, you can take some disappointing outcomes and still frame them in ways that emphasize your organization’s commitment to
Magical Brand Experiences: A Tale of Two Twitters, Part 2
Magical Brand Experiences: A Tale of Two Twitters, Part 2 As I stated last time, I recently had the occasion to attend two conventions in two different cities and had a remarkably negative experience with a hotel. However, I had a tremendously positive experience the following week which illustrates how magical it is when a company really gets it right. In this case, it was with an airline. (No, I’m not kidding!) Brand Two: Delta Air Lines Full disclosure: I’m not an unbiased reporter when it comes to Delta. I’ve been flying them almost exclusively for a long time, even before I moved to Atlanta over two decades ago. That said, I never had particularly high status within their SkyMiles program. I’m not a Diamond Medallion or a Million-Miler. I made Platinum Medallion last year due to a number of overseas trips I took while president of an international association. At the end of the article I address the August 8 system outage, but this article was written a week ago. Headed to Indy A few weeks ago I was headed to Indianapolis for a conference. As is my habit, I try to stop by the Delta Sky Club for breakfast if I have time prior to a flight. In this case I was there later in the morning, so they were transitioning from breakfast to lunch as I was getting ready to go to my gate. The typical lunch spread includes cookies, so I decided to pick up a peanut butter or chocolate chip cookie on the way to the gate. I found no peanut butter or chocolate chip cookies. Instead, I found new lemon cookies. They were light, sweet, and delicious. As I got to the gate, I decided to let Delta know that I enjoyed them. This is my tweet and Delta’s typically quick response: Holy smokes! The new lemon cookies in the @Delta Sky Club are amazing! — Joe M. Turner (@turnermagic) July 12, 2016 Joe, enjoy the Sky Club and the amazing lemon cookies. *HW — Delta (@Delta) July 12, 2016 I joked that they should put some in first class on my flight to Indianapolis. They suggested that I take some Biscoff cookies, and I responded that those cookies were now in second place. Later, when I posted a photo showing that I had arrived in Indy, the team responded and was glad that I had a great flight, and thanked me for the photo. I responded that I just wished I had some of those cookies! All in all, this was just a charming exchange that shows Delta to be an interested, fun, and social brand. Special Delivery That night I was in the opening session of the conference when my phone vibrated – it was an Indianapolis phone number. I stepped outside to answer it. I was told, “Mr. Turner, this is Christa Khalileh, the station manager of the Indianapolis Delta Sky Club. I am in your hotel lobby with a special delivery.” I suspected what had happened, and couldn’t believe it. “I’ll be right down.” I found Ms. Khalileh standing in the lobby with a platter of approximately three dozen lemon cookies and a thank you card. She said they had seen my Tweets and thought it would be fun to make it happen. I told her I couldn’t believe that they had done this and that I was certainly surprised and grateful. I asked her if she had tried one of the cookies yet and she had not. She explained that they had not gotten those cookies in Indianapolis yet; they had actually flown them up from Atlanta especially for me! This was a spectacular experience and a great illustration of how a brand can use social media effectively, translate it into a magical real-life experience, and reap lasting goodwill from people beyond their normal audience. What are they doing right? Delta has a social media team that pays attention. In the past when I have had complaints or even just gripes about the usual traveling woes, they have responded quickly and professionally, usually with a helpful tip or at least genuine empathy. I have tagged them in positive posts, too, and they usually respond with a “Thanks!” or “Yay!” or other good-natured comments. They are quick to respond, and come across as polite and appropriately happy or unhappy when doing it. They nearly instantly validate whatever emotion I am feeling at the time of my Tweet. Another thing they are doing right has to do with honesty about their promises. They recently combined their sales and customer service back into a single point of contact. While many companies shy away from having potential customers (sales) see the potential complaints (customer service), Delta is transparent. They actually deliver negative feedback to people who can change policy. How many times have you wondered whether your complaint was really “shared with the management” when a customer service representative said they would do so? I have often wondered whether it happens. But on the same day as the cookie delivery, Delta announced that – due to feedback from their customers – they were adjusting an upgrade policy that had been changed. They don’t shy away from admitting that changes might be necessary, and they credit the customer when making the correction. Perhaps most importantly, they understood the value of translating virtual activity into a real-world experience. What did the cookie experience cost Delta? The cookies themselves – maybe a couple of dollars. A platter and some plastic wrap. A gift card. A flight attendant went above and beyond her normal responsibilities to pick up some cookies at an Atlanta Sky Club and drop them off at the Indianapolis Sky Club. The plane was going to fly anyway, so putting the cookies aboard was not an extra expense. Ms. Khalileh invested a little time and an out-of-the-way drive to drop them off at the hotel. In all likelihood, she personally incurred the highest
Magical Brand Experiences: A Tale of Two Twitters, Part 1
Magical Brand Experiences: A Tale of Two Twitters, Part 1 I recently had the occasion to attend two conventions in two different cities. One trip brought a memorable but non-magical experience with a brand that I’m sure the company wishes they could erase. The other trip brought a fantastic brand experience that illustrates how magical it is when a company really gets it right. Brand One: The Hotel I thought about whether to write about this as I’m not interested in sharing “just another customer service war story.” We’ve all had them. After reflection I decided to describe the experience without naming the brand. About two months ago I determined that I would need to ship some items ahead to my first convention, mainly as a traveling convenience. I called the hotel in advance to find out the process for shipping items so I could claim them at the front desk when I arrived. I was told to ship the package to the regular address and it would be waiting. I had another package drop-shipped from a vendor using the same process. The day before my flight I called to verify that the packages had arrived. I was told that I would have to be transferred to a retail shipping company with an office inside the hotel. This was new information, as was the discovery that my packages had arrived but there would be a fee for picking them up. My request to speak to a manager was delayed since it was after 5:00 PM locally. I posted a query on the brand’s Facebook page asking whether the fee ought to be waived since I was not informed of it in advance. I said I would post a follow-up there after getting to talk with someone. There was no response. The next day I spoke to the retail shipping store manager and the hotel sales manager, neither of whom were willing to budge. I asked whether their failure to disclose a fee was something I should have to pay for. I asked whether they would pay an undisclosed fee for handling my credit card. Finally, the hotel manager told me, after we had both achieved an unpleasant state of mind, that she would cover the fee. This courtesy was appreciated but not extended to anyone else in my group. With no response on the Facebook page, I posted a follow-up explaining my displeasure, including my experiences in dealing with the retail shop and the manager. No response was forthcoming. I finally looked up the corporate Twitter account and received nearly instant feedback. I was told that my frustration and surprise were valid. I was told that they would look into the situation. I was told that it was not wrong of me to feel disappointed and even angry about being hit with an unexpected fee. This was a pleasant change of pace. After I arrived at the hotel and got my packages, I learned that the manager was not pleased that I had named her in my Facebook post. I could not help but shake my head, as there would have been nothing to write about in the first place if the experience had been handled differently. The correct answer at the outset would have been, “You’re absolutely right, Mr. Turner, we’ll be happy to waive the fee as it was our error not to inform you.” I was not opposed to the fact that there might be a fee. I was opposed to the fact that I had not been given the opportunity to either accept it or make other arrangements. I might have chosen to take the fee for convenience. I might have shipped it elsewhere. I might have packed another suitcase and made my own travel more burdensome. Whatever the case, I should have had the right to make an informed decision. Where the Magic was Lost This experience was memorable, but it wasn’t magical. The corporate brand handled their Twitter well, but the local hotel handled their Facebook and telephone interactions poorly. They only commented on my Facebook post on their page after I had gone to the corporate Twitter account. They grudgingly agreed to do the right thing only after passing me back and forth and passing the buck along with me. The retail store and the hotel both used each other as a shield for not taking ownership of resolving the problem. When faced with a customer willing to implement the same business practice they were using, the hotel resented it and found it disrespectful. To put a bow on this, I did take a few minutes to buy the hotel manager a small gift and write a thank-you card while I was at the convention. Even though it took a lot of prodding, she ultimately did go above and beyond to solve my problem and rectify the situation, and I thought it appropriate to be gracious. That is also part of why I am not naming the hotel here. That said, I have no interest in being part of anything at that hotel again in the future, nor am I particularly motivated to give that brand another try when booking another convention site. Rather than take an opportunity to create a magical experience, I was made to feel like their failure to inform me when I asked for details was somehow my own fault. Their processes were used like shields and weapons to protect anyone from taking the initiative to try to solve the problem. I’ve written before that the experience with a brand stops being magical when the processes stop being invisible. It’s even less so when the processes are openly used against you. Next time – Magical Brand Experiences: A Tale of Two Twitters, Part 2
Cultivating Leaders for Leadership
Cultivating Leaders for Leadership I’ve heard a lot of complaining about leadership qualities with regard to what is almost universally acknowledged as a disappointing selection of U.S. presidential candidates this cycle. Admittedly, I’ve contributed more than my share of complaints about leaders. Today, however, I saw a local leader in my community participate in a conversation that really motivated me to think about why and how we may get the candidates we deserve. I’ve studied leaders and leadership for thirty years. I’ve had a variety of leadership roles in corporate, church, civic, and professional organizations. Some of these roles were job functions, some were appointed, and some were elected. My most recent personal experience comes from the association world. Over the last decade I served as a committee member, board member, officer, and ultimately as international president of an association with roughly 10,000 members in 88 countries. Leading any organization, even one that small, comes with a healthy dose of complex issues from the financial to the legal to the interpersonal. Many such boards and associations are rightly concerned with their future leadership and whether they have leaders “in the pipeline” to take the reins effectively. Leaving the association microcosm aside, the issue of “missing leaders” is even more concerning on a personal level. As individual citizens, we often complain that we are forced to choose between the lesser of evils. We lament the rarity of unifying figures. We wonder why our ballot only seems to list people among whom we must weigh flaws more than strengths. A Difficult Question I think the issue of quality leadership takes on a completely new light when you ask yourself a difficult and potentially convicting question: Do my actions encourage the kinds of people I want as leaders to pursue leadership roles? Most of us do not actively encourage people to become leaders. Most of us are simply content to complain that the kinds of leaders we’d like to see not on our ballot. As citizens, we are not guaranteed that we will always get to choose the most successful, most principled, most ethical, most capable, or otherwise superlative candidates from within our population. We only get to choose between those who submit themselves for consideration. This self-selection comes with some risk; among our choices will be those whose motivations are not always altruistic. Some may be motivated by power, fame, ego, or a desire to prove something to someone. Some will be better at hiding it than others. What Should We Do? If we want leaders who meet our approval – morally, ethically, politically, or otherwise – we have to actively cultivate their interest in leadership. It is going to be difficult to convince the most ethical person you know to participate in a field well-known for its ethical challenges. Why would that person want to put himself or herself (and his/her family) into the crucible of leadership? Some people will do it because they are driven by vision and principle to lead and attempt to help their organization, community, or nation. Some will do it because they are driven by desire for power or recognition. Most will do it with a combination of motivations. One thing we can do to help adjust the mix for the better is to actively encourage the leaders we would like to see to participate. When you identify the kind of person you admire and envision as a leader, let them know. Encourage them. Be vocal and consistent in your support. Be supportive of his or her family. Be a voice of compassion, appreciation, and influence. Acknowledge excellent leaders when you see them. Footnote: This article was partially inspired by my local school board member, Kim Cobb. I consistently see her interacting with parents and citizens online, answering questions about local policy and encouraging people to participate in their local government. She is a great example of an engaged, in-touch, responsive public official. Thanks, Ms. Cobb!
Sales: The Point Where the Salesman Lost Me
Sales: The Point Where the Salesman Lost Me (or “Stopping When the Sale Is Made”) The Set-Up One of the most important things for a salesperson to learn is how to stop selling when the sale is made. Today I had an experience that reinforced that concept for me. I thought we all might benefit by breaking it down. I pulled into a local supermarket chain to buy gasoline. I’m rather brand loyal to this chain because of my discount points, so I made a special trip to get to this particular location for the discount. While I was pumping gas, a gentleman in a pink traffic vest walked up and commented on the sports logo on the back of my vehicle. He misidentified my team, but it was a fair mistake. He introduced himself, and then Jonathan and I talked about football for a moment. He transitioned smoothly into explaining why he was there. Jonathan was polite, respectful, and had a great personality. He introduced the product, a cleaning wax for cars, and deftly but politely convinced me to let him demonstrate it. After all, my car wasn’t going anywhere until the tank was filled, so this was a pretty smart place for their company to set up a sales promotion. They had the approval of the supermarket, which was making a donation to breast cancer research for every purchase. The product worked great. Every benefit he described got me thinking about how great it would be for our three vehicles, even though I’m not really the type to go out and wash and wax our cars. The idea of helping to facilitate a research contribution was nice, as was the idea of the bonus discount points I’d get for buying the product. I was waiting for the price. Jonathan followed his script smoothly and without seeming like a robot. He introduced it at a high price point, then led into why there was a discount during this promotion. And of course, this promotional price would cover two cans, not just one! They were set up to manage all the purchases through the supermarket’s own purchasing system, so there was no concern about fraud or identity theft. I had every reason to believe this was on the up-and-up. After I filled up my tank, he motioned me to a parking space because the gas pumps needed to stay open. Fine. Where do I sign? The Breakdown I walked to the table where the promotion was set up. I was reaching for my wallet when Jonathan said, “There’s just one more thing I need to show you – they ask us to make sure you know about this.” I saw four cans shrinkwrapped together. I thought it was an upsell to 4 cans. I listened. Instead, Jonathan showed me a 4-can collection including this stuff I liked, plus 3 other products, all packaged together. For twice the original price, he explained that I could get all of this stuff – usually sold at twice the new price! – and the two cans I was interested in would be included as a bonus. This was the point where the salesman lost me. The sale was all but concluded, and then I got three other things to consider, a new price point to weigh, and worst of all, an opportunity to make a comparison between what I was ready to buy and something I really didn’t want but was part of a package deal. First, I had already expressed a reservation about my natural tendency not to put extra effort into washing my car. A wash at an automated car wash is fine, and the occasional detailing is a bonus. I am just not the type to go out in my driveway and wash the cars. Watching Jonathan show me the product in person got me to at least consider that I might be able to muster the wherewithal to use his product. But when three new products were introduced, all with their own specific uses, I was certainly not interested in the amount of work that all of those different cans represented. Second, the new price point was twice what I was thinking about when I moved to buy. That gave me pause. Yes, it was for a 4-pack PLUS the original products, but it was still double what I had expressed interest in spending. Finally, the new bonus pack gave me a new value comparison. Suddenly, the original price for the first two cans didn’t seem like such a great deal if they were just going to be thrown in for free with the double-priced bundle. Why pay 50% of that for just the two cans? Yes, the bargain on 6 cans was supposed to be an incentive, but if I only wanted the two cans of the original product, now it felt more like an unnecessarily expensive proposition rather than a discounted promotional price. I told Jonathan the truth. I had only come to the store for bread and laundry detergent. I was buying gas and he got my attention, but we passed my buying point when the new products were introduced. I said I’d think about it but the moment had passed. It wasn’t entirely Jonathan’s fault. He is a talented salesperson, but the process he was required to follow pushed him into introducing the upsell before my debit card was ready to run. I chose to save 100% on the purchase by skipping the initial offer when it stopped feeling like a real discount. Questions to Consider Are you rushing to your upsell? Jonathan didn’t exactly rush, but he didn’t close the initial sale before the upsell pitch. Is your upsell priced so as to make the initial offer seem significantly less valuable? Jonathan didn’t control the pricing, but the way the package was presented made what I was about to spend on just two cans seem wasteful or even insulting, since they were going
Atlanta Magician and Atlanta Speaker Turner Interviewed on “Cringe” Podcast
Atlanta Magician and Atlanta Speaker Turner Interviewed on “Cringe” Podcast Marc van Bulck, a Presbyterian pastor in Ohio and a magic hobbyist, recently interviewed me for his podcast called “Cringe.” Marc’s podcast is subtitled, “Conversations with Nerds, Artists, and Theologians” – and perhaps all of them apply in this case! In this episode we talk about how the theatrical arts like magic can help people overcome the urge to be vitriolic and engage in healthy communities of dialogue where we can learn from each other. You can download the podcast or listen online at the following link: UPDATE: Alas, many years have passed and the audio of the podcast no longer appears anywhere on the web that I can find it.
